A washing apparatus for a motor vehicle can comprise a plurality of brushes including at least one washing brush with a substantially vertically oriented rotation axis, a brush mechanism for guiding and transporting the washing brushes on a course over and around the self-propelled vehicle, and a control mechanism for the course of the washing brush and for control of the washing apparatus.
One such washing apparatus is described in a brochure "Euro. Combi" of the Kleindienst firm, Augsburg, Germany. It uses lateral washing brushes with substantially vertical rotation axes in addition to other washing brushes which are guided over and around the front, the sides and the rear surfaces of the vehicle being washed.
In order to avoid dirty vertical streaks, which can remain on the front and rear surfaces, both lateral brushes move back and forth over the middle portions of the surfaces of the back or front together about 20 cm to one side of the middle and then subsequently to the same extent to the other side of the middle.
From a rear surface of the vehicle in some cases, a part of the vehicle, for example a trailer hitch or coupler at the vehicle rear, can protrude so that together with another vehicle part, for example a bumper, it can form a convergent slot or gap in which the bristles of a lateral washing brush wedge or get caught, whereby the washing brush can be damaged by a forced stoppage of its drive motor and/or the tearing out of the bristles.